1.) The few normals I have run as a healer were guild runs and the 1 random, I did had a group of people accustomed to the new Cata style and things went smoothly. Other than that, the horror stories about the LFD pool is making me think the headache and repair bill is not worth it. (Mine own experience in Heroic Deadmines with a PuG tank….needs more booze)

2.) The healing style I grew to love in Wrath, just does not cut it. Discipline – does not have the punch to keep things in check. If something goes wrong, someone stands in bad “by accident”, mobs CC gets broken, and people get face owned…..Disc does not have the same oomph it had to push things through. Disc is all about dmg mitigation, and the main source of this PW:S is not longer viable due to a couple of things. A.) mana cost and B.) it gets popped so easily now.

You maybe thinking, “But Slice! Prayer of Healing now procs DA 100% of the time!” Sure it does…but the with the actual amount that PoH heals…the bubbles it creates…they do not absorb all that much.

Power Word: Barrier and Pain Suppression are a very sexy spell duo indeed. But again even with these cooldowns…you are still lacking in the HEALING DEPT.

1.) Heal seem meh….
2.) Flash Heal….can heal for a lot, but will leave you sapped.
3.) A Borrowed Time + Greater Heal can be nice…but still will leave ya gasping for mana.
4.) Prayer of Healing – DA procs yay! But still not a super amount of healing when shit hits the fan.

Disc at this time, is not working for me at least. At the higher gear levels it may be a viable choice for me, sure I could do it right now, but why struggle. Better stats mean stronger bubbles, less pain being lovingly showered on your group!

3.) Lots of member of SR are either on vacation, getting to 85, or gearing up for heroics.

Lamenting the loss of me bubbles, I have committed apostasy. I have went away from Discipline and rejoined the Choir of the failangels….aka Holy.

And wow…Holy IS A FREAKIN blast to play now. The different Chakras and make playing a holy priest a fun monster to play. The modification to Holy Word: Chastize depending on which chakra state you are in is a great idea. You need AoE? cast Holy Word: Sanctuary?

Need a harder hitting single target heal spell which also increases the chance for healing spells to crit? Look no farther then, Holy Word: Serenity!

The hurdle with Holy is the Chakra swapping and that takes a few minutes to get accustomed to, but once you get the handle of it, it plays out quite nicely.

Also this talent in the Holy Tree is soooo win, it really helps out with mana regen (while in combat) so much.

The trouble I always have with Disc (which is my priests spec as well) is that it seems balanced around PvP rather than PvE. So if we would get something awesome or helpful or viable for PvE, it usually gets nerfed to the ground because of PvP, which is horribly frustrating. I get it, but it doesn’t mean it doesn’t suck.

I haven’t tried healing any of the new Cataclysm dungeons because my priest is just doing archaeology and hasn’t even quested yet, but I was wondering how much the new Inner Will or whatever would help with bubble costs and of course, how viable it is to get smites off to increase healing. I guess I’ll just have to find out.

The healing from Atonement from what I have seen can be ok but it not being a “smart” heal means it may go to somewhere else other then the tank.

The mana gain from AA is barely enough to pay for the smiting to get to 5 stacks.

For me the issue it bubbles pop so easily, and heal is just so weak in comparison to a Holy Priests Heal combined with Chakra and the buff from casting Holy Word: Serenity. I will go back once gear lvls get better. I like bubble priesting a lot more then holy priesting,

I play a holy priest myself. I wanted to chime in with your recent conversion.

I 100% agree with your theory that Discipline just does not have the gear to deliver an effective priest. The bubbles barely absorb any damage (especially when compared to 150k hp pools for the tanks), atonement healing will lead you to a wipe on any fight except Halfus Wyrmbreaker. Penance just isn’t enough to make up the slack and if things get out of hand you’re in trouble.

I love that holy has so many extra utilities. I’ve been a holy fanboy since BC but they’ve taken it over the top by fixing Lightwell and giving us Chakra. Healing heroics and raids I honestly find myself in Chakra: Heal about 95% of the time. Refreshing my renews and providing that nice (and CHEAP) burst heal with Holy Word: Serenity is exception. If something goes wrong? No problem, I have a flash heal followed by a hastened greater heal. Mana inefficient? No worries, I have 4000 combat regen when I’m buffed. The whole group is taking damage? lol Prayer of Healing + Circle of Healing + Sanctuary. And lightwell? Once you get your group to using it … Lightwell will heal for more than your Circle of Healing (no joke).